Using Technology to Support Higher Order Thinking

How can technology be used to support higher-order thinking?

The rise of technology in education has made higher-order thinking possible among students in classrooms. Rather than the simple handouts that teachers have been giving to students for years and the multiple choice tests that students have been so accustomed to, students now have the opportunity to use the internet. The internet offers so many different tools to use in classrooms that engage students to use higher order thinking. Higher order thinking is getting away from just memorizing facts and questions for exams. The internet offers games, study guides, and online flash cards that help improve higher order thinking. The way they help is by pictures, sounds, video clips and other technologies that cannot be offered without the rise in technology.

Give an example of a technology that supports higher-order thinking and be specific in describing HOW it supports higher-order thinking.

www.forevex.com is a great technology that supports higher-order thinking. It is a website that offers a virtual stock exchange that students and teachers can get involved with in the classroom. It supports higher order thinking because it gives students real world education on the stockmarket. Students get to actually purchase stocks with virtual money and sell stocks when the students feel like the stock is ready to be sold. This gives students a lesson on the stock exchange and economics without reading something from a textbook. Students will be able to use this knowledge for the rest of their lives. Also, the ability to compete against fellow students in your classroom makes www.forevex.com a great tool for higher-order thinking.

Using Technology to Affirm Diversity How can technology be used to affirm diversity?

Technology can be used to affirm diversity by giving students resources to learn about different cultures. There are so many different websites that have been created that teach people about cultures around the world. Also, videos have been posted on sites like Youtube.com that teach students about diversity by people who are ethnically diverse. Also there are different translators that have been added to the internet that allow students to type in words from a different language and see it in english or whatever language they speak.

Give an example of a technology that affirms diversity and be specific in describing HOW it affirms diversity.

My favorite technology that affirms diversity is google.com/translate. Although this is a simple tool, it allows students to get involved in learning about diversity in many different ways. The first way is getting involved in foreign language classes. The ability to use online translators will make it easier on students who want to learn a foreign language more likely to take the class with the ability to translate. This will get more students likely to take foreign langage classes in school and learn about different cultures. The way i would like to use translators in the classroom is by getting pen pals in other countries. Students could write in their native languages and send letters to students in other countries. This would be fun for students and would teach them that people in other countries are not that much different from them. Talking to people in other countries would teach students to accept diversity.

How can technology be used to address the needs of learners with special needs?

The rise of assitive technologies has allowed students with disabilities to be able to participate in classrooms with students who do not suffer from disabilities. Their are so many assistive technologies out there that teachers and students can use to make the classroom suitable for all students. Things as simple as pencil grips will help students with muscle problems. Braille textbooks and talking calculators will allow blind students to read and do problems just like everyone else. Technology has really allowed students with disabilities in this day and age to be equal to students who do not have disabilities.

Give an example and explain how it would support students with special/diverse needs in your future classroom?

One example of an assitive technology that will help students with special needs in my future classroom is having disabled students using laptops in class to write papers if they cannot write like the rest of the students. There was a kid that i went to middle school and high school with that suffered from a problem that made him shake. He couldn't write using a pencil, because whatever he wrote was illegible. He used a mini laptop and word processor to write papers and do assignments that other students were doing in class. I will use this in my classroom because it keeps all my students on an equal level.